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22 Unique First Date Ideas – What to Do on a Budget

When I think back to the first date I had with my husband, what surprises me is how ordinary it was. We simply met at his house, and talked from our hearts for an entire rainy afternoon.

If, that is, you could call that a date at all. Some might contest the term. However, some version of that conversation has been going on for 13 years now, and that first date ended up leading to the rest of my life. Who knew?

What Makes a Great First Date?

So what makes a great first date? Is it what you do that counts? Who you’re with? What you talk about? How you act?

I think it’s a combination of all those things. You might not be able to wine and dine the date of your dreams. But if you act from your heart and leave yourself open to adventure, a picnic with budget wine, crusty bread, and olives might enable you to make the kind of connection you simply can’t sitting in a fancy restaurant or a high-priced musical show.

That being said, however, I do think it’s important to try to come up with fun and creative ideas for your first date. Being limited by your budget often forces you to come up with ideas that are original and, even better, a lot of fun. And approaching your first date with a desire to make a real connection with the other person is, I think, just as important as what you decide to do.

So, let’s focus on the to-do side of the date. If you need some creative and, most importantly, cheap ideas for your next first date, then hopefully you can find some inspiration in these ideas.

22 Great First Date Ideas on a Budget

1. Visit an Art Museum If you’re into art, then you can save big if you buy a membership to your art museum. For instance, we pay $60 per year to be members of the Detroit Institute of Art. But we get in free, and get tickets to all the special events. This can pay for itself in no time. Even if you don’t buy a membership, art museum entry fees are usually cheap anyway.

2. Go See a Community Theater Play Community theater is incredibly fun, and incredibly cheap. Follow this one up with dinner from a local diner and you’ve got a budget date in the making.

3. Do Art Together Do you have clay? Crayons? Paint? If you have art supplies, why not hang out at your house or apartment and make some art together? Buy some cheap take out, put on some great music, and make a night of it.

4. Watch Cartoons Together If you’re a child of the ’70s or ’80s, then you remember Looney Tunes. In fact, I have 6 DVDs full of those old Looney Tunes cartoons. They just don’t make them like that anymore.

If you love cartoons, why not hang out at your house, in your pajamas, and watch cartoons together? Don’t forget, plenty of those old Looney Tunes cartoons are up on YouTube.

5. Walk Dogs at the Humane Society

If it’s nice out, why not volunteer to take shelter dogs out for a walk? They never get personal walks like that, and doling out love to a needy dog is a wonderful activity to do with someone.

6. Go Inner Tubing Live near a river? Is it summer? Go inner tubing!

7. Make Homemade Pizza Instead of going out, why not make your own pizza at home? Yes, this includes making the dough as well. You might be surprised at how much better homemade pizza is!

8. Wii Olympics Tag teaming on the Nintendo Wii is a fun and free way to spend time together. This works especially well for double dates.

9. Go Thrifting Each of you has a budget of $5 or $10 to spend at a thrift store. The challenge? See who can find the most outrageous or hideous outfit. The crux? You have to change into the outfit and take pictures.

10. Go to Chuck-E-Cheese My husband’s last birthday party was at Chuck E. Cheese’s. One word: skeeball. Chuck E. Cheese’s can be a super fun place to go on a first date, if the other person doesn’t mind the lights and noise.

11. Go Rollerskating You can often save big on rollerskating if you go during the week. Also, do a search for coupons; many rinks offer discounts in the local paper or parent’s magazine. Of course you can always skate outside for free in the park as well.

12. Go to a Carnival Carnivals can get pricey. But in terms of people watching and down-home fun, they can’t be beat. You can also forgo the rides in favor of elephant ears, and a blanket for people watching.

13. Go Stargazing If it’s a clear, warm night, then why not go stargazing? Bring a blanket, bug spray, and a telescope if you have one.

14. Face Paint Water-based face paint is cheap, especially if you have any left over from Halloween. Paint each other’s faces, and then walk around showing off your creations.

15. Go to a Comedy Club Comedy clubs can either be a blast, or a dud. Either way, it’s sure to be an experience! You could also go see an improv group, which can be incredibly fun as well.

16. Go Rock Climbing If you live near a climbing gym, this can be a super fun activity to do on a first date. Rates are cheaper during the week, and if your date is afraid of heights, just stick to bouldering!

17. Play Games in the Park Pack a picnic, your UNO cards, and a blanket. You’re set for the afternoon.

18. Play at Target I love doing this. Head over to Target (or any other retail store) later in the evening. Play with the toys, peruse the books, and play hide-and-seek.

19. Walk Dogs Do you have a dog? Does your date have a dog? Go walk your dogs! Finish up at a local coffee shop for a treat.

21. Play Night Games I can remember all too well playing ghosts in the graveyard and capture the flag at night when I was a kid. And yes, I’m only 32 so it’s not like these games are ancient history. They’re super fun! If you have a group of fun-loving friends, and your date seems to be adventurous as well, night games are a blast. End of story.

22. Play Paper Dolls Before you roll your eyes at this one, let me say this: playing paper dolls with my friends is one of our favorite things to do. And this group includes an equal mix of guys and gals. The focus is on high-fashion, couture paper dolls, not kiddy paper dolls. Many of our dolls look more like works of art.

What do we do? We’ve downloaded and cut out templates of paper dolls. Then, we cut out images from fashion magazines and use fabric scraps and other materials we’ve collected to “dress up” our paper dolls. By the end, the dolls look more like outrageous runway models.

One of my friends brought her first date to one of our paper doll making sessions just a few weeks ago. This guy was your typical “guys guy” – he worked on motorcycles and had tattoos. And yet he fell into making his paper doll with excitement and a sense of fun. And you know what? His paper doll was the coolest one of the night, and he said he couldn’t remember the last time he’d had so much fun. So don’t underestimate this idea; it can be really fun, even for a first date.

Heather Levin is a writer with over 15 years experience covering personal finance, natural health, parenting, and green living. She lives in the mountains of Western North Carolina with her husband and two young sons, where they're often wandering on frequent picnics to find feathers and wildflowers.

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